Chronicles of a Watchman by Dr. James P. Norman Jr.

TO BE IN CHRIST – SALT (PART FOUR) Salt speaks of the risen life of Jesus Christ, imparted by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to the redeemed sinner. It is the salt for barrenness! As you have been reconciled to God by his death, you are constantly to be saved by his life. It is only the life of the Lord Jesus, his activity, clothed with you and displayed through you that ultimately will find the approval of God. As a forgiven sinner, you are a member of a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ (I Peter 2:5). It is that Lord Jesus Christ alone who makes your sacrifices acceptable to God. Only what he does in you and through you merits his approval and God can and will accept nothing less! Every oblation of the meat offering shall though season with salt; neither shall you suffer the salt of the covenant of the God to be lacking from the meat offering, with all your offerings you shall offer salt. (Lev 2:13) Under no circ...

In the Old Testament, every demand God makes on a man is from His point of view and is completely logical. What is the demand that God makes of man? God said be ye holy as I am holy. How holy then is the natural question?  Even as I am holy. Utterly holy, totally holy in the absoluteness of God's righteousness.   In the New Testament, what is the demand the Lord Jesus would impose of us?   Matthew 5:48 says we should be holy, and be perfect even as your Father in Heaven is perfect. These are demands on a man from God's point of view which is completely reasonable. Christ's logic is the goal not man's logic. Evasive is man shaming, ducking, dodging, that the Word of God, and stretching grace in a carnal direction that God never intended.   God made man to be in likeness and in His image -- not a carnal self-centered, ego driven Bible monster.   When God first made man, how holy do you think he was?   If, He made him in His ow...

I never thought integrity would become a powerful evangelistic tool, but here we are.  On the three points of spirit, soul, and body, the Church must work to be blameless.  Christian laymen (Pastors, Bishops and Deacons) must be representative examples of biblical integrity, which means being complete, wholesome, and biblically moral. Church attendance should produce knowing the difference between right and wrong, and the development of the fruits of the human spirit.  If anyone wants to provide leadership in the Church, then preconditions exist which include that: a leader must be well-thought-of, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, hospitable, not given to his lower unsaved nature, and not holding to the old drug, and sexual habits, before Christ.  This is not a person whose speech is like a parrot repeating old messages warmed over. This is not a person overly fond of wine or hard beverages and allowing the s...

In times like these, Pastors, Elders, Deacons, and all others need to ask for the gift of discerning of spirits. The New Testament clearly teaches that every Christian needs to be able to distinguish good from evil, right from wrong.   Hebrew 5:14 says that mature Christians have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. You shall be able to test teaching, and lifestyles of the pulpit folks against scripture, as we all must, as did the Berean Jews in Acts 17:11.  I John 4:1 explicitly tells us “do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God.” These passages describe the Christian role of discernment. Within the Body of Christ (Body), however, there are individuals gifted with the ability of discerning of spirits. Those with this spiritual gift must be free and willing to exercise it. Some who have it may be reluctant to use it, because it requires a good deal of courage. It is comforting for the whole Body to know that G...